Wow. I didn’t know this, but I was actually able to observe this state on myself. When going to sleep, my mind is wandering. But at one point it drifts from real world thoughts to completely abstract concepts and wild imagination that sometimes makes no sense. It’s almost like a hallucination. What’s most interesting is that sometimes I am able to notice the transition to this state and consciously observe it. Usuall…
I used to be able to do this thing to where if I kept perfectly still, I'd "stare" (with eyes closed) into the nothingness---by that I mean I'd be staring into the backs of my eyelids---and there'd be a point in which my mind would start to create images. For instance, the shape would take the form of a fish, and then I'd see it become a radio, etc. If I held on and tried this for as long as possible, I'd feel my bod…
> If I held on and tried this for as long as possible, I'd feel my body drift off to sleep. But it was hard, because there'd be something in me that would jerk and stop the imagery (like a hypnic jerk, just nowhere near as uncomfortable).
I do the same thing, though the more mental effort put into creating the images makes it take longer before I'm able to fall asleep. There's a sweet spot of putting the smallest mental effort to go to sleep quickly.
I usually use it as a crutch when I can't just let my mind drift.